Mr Jumabhoy obtained his Bachelor of Laws from King’s College London in 2002 and began his legal career as a barrister there.
He returned to Singapore in 2011, joining the Attorney-General’s Chambers as a Deputy Public Prosecutor.
As prosecutor, he handled crimes like murder drug trafficking and financial crimes such as corruption and fraud involving public officials, prosecuting Tey Tsun Hang, a former law professor in a case the media dubbed the “sex-for-grades” trial.
On the prosecution’s side, Deputy Attorney-General Ang Cheng Hock is expected to lead the charge.
Mr Ang was appointed DAG in 2022, resigning as a judge to take on the appointment. Before this, he was a partner in one of Singapore’s top law firms, Allen & Gledhill, handling civil and commercial litigation and other disputes.
He was appointed senior counsel in 2009 and chairs the Singapore Academy of Law’s Professional Affairs and Membership Committee.
WHAT TO EXPECT
A total of 16 days have been slated for the trial so far.
A trial typically begins with the prosecution setting out any agreed statement of facts – a document with facts agreed on by prosecution and defence, to distil the triable issues to be focused on.
If there is no agreement, the prosecutors will open the trial by reading out their opening statement. This contains an overview of their case against the accused person, how they intend to prove their case and the list of witnesses or exhibits they intend to produce.
The prosecution will then call its witnesses in turn. The witnesses will each be cross-examined by the defence after being examined by the prosecution.
After the prosecution closes its case, if the judge finds a case is made out for the defence to answer, it will call on the accused to testify. If Singh chooses to testify, he will open the defence’s case as its first witness, with the same process of examination and cross-examination, except this time with the prosecution doing the latter.
CNA checked with Singh’s lawyers if the father of two daughters intended to testify, and if the lawyers could provide their list of defence witnesses, but the lawyers said they were “unable to share such information at this time”.
While no word has been given officially so far on the expected witnesses for Singh’s trial, it is likely that those involved in the inquiry before the COP could be called.
The obvious name is Ms Khan herself. Individuals specifically named in charge sheets – including WP chairwoman Sylvia Lim and WP member Muhamad Faisal Abdul Manap – could also be tapped as witnesses.
Others such as former WP secretary-general Low Thia Khiang and ex-cadres Mr Yudhishthra Nathan and Ms Loh Peiying, who testified before the COP, are also potential witnesses.
PENALTIES AND POSSIBLE DISQUALIFICATION?
The penalties Singh faces are a maximum jail term of three years, a fine of up to S$7,000, or both per charge.
The Attorney-General’s Chambers has previously said that the prosecution will seek a fine for each charge if Singh is convicted.
